Abercrombie, on the jacket for his recent novel "Blood of Patriots," describes himself as a "progressive Democrat" who "has championed the causes of human rights, campaign reform and the labor movement."

But Abercrombie's recent voting record puts him as close to the middle of his party as to its liberal wing. And he appears to be edging further - if ever so slightly - from that left wing:

Abercrombie's most recent approval ratings from liberal groups like the American Civil Liberties Union and Americans for Democratic Action - while still high - are slightly lower than they were a few years ago. Conversely, his most recent ratings with conservative groups, while still low, have inched higher.

In the past 18 months, Abercrombie has voted with the majority of his party 84.2 percent of the time, less than the 89.5 percent of the time he voted with Democrats in 1993-1994. Two-thirds of his fellow House Democrats voted with their leadership more often than Abercrombie.

Abercrombie has voted with conservative House Speaker Newt Gingrich 37.7 percent of the time this year. That's more often than 76 other Democrats, and far more often than he voted with Gingrich last year, when the two agreed on only 24.7 percent of the votes.

Abercrombie is not the most liberal member of the two-person Hawaii House delegation. Rep. Patsy Mink, D-rural Oahu/neighbor islands, is less likely to vote with Republicans and more likely to vote with Democrats, has the same or higher ratings with liberal groups and the same or lower ratings with conservative groups.

Political observers agree Abercrombie has a long way to go before anyone labels him conservative, and liberal groups still claim his as one of their own. Nevertheless, many agree that his voting record has edged away from the left limits of American politics.

"A lot of Democrats appear to have moved to the right and he's one of them," said Mike Gehrke, research director for Public Citizen. "Looking at his record, it doesn't strike me as being out there on either wing. As far as the Democratic Party goes, by this measure he is pretty much smack dab in the middle."

Swindle, citing recent Abercrombie votes against welfare reform and a bill to limit gay marriages, said any attempt to portray his opponent as anything but an "extremist liberal" is misleading.

"There's no doubt he's shifting his views to the center," said Swindle.

"But let's be realistic. He is what he is and always has been . . . There's no way anybody should try to cloak Neil Abercrombie as anything other than an extremist liberal."

Abercrombie said he has matured as a legislator and is more willing to compromise if it yields results.

"I'm a lawmaker, not a theologian," he said. "Whether I've moved to the right is for other people to judge. . . . If moving to the right is a judgment people want to make because I'm trying to protect Hawaii's interests, I'm willing to accept that."

Abercrombie campaign strategist Jim Loomis, meanwhile, denied that the three-term incumbent has changed.

"Neil has continued to do what he's always done - vote his conscience," said Loomis.

Political observers agree it is too early to draw major conclusions.

"You're not really dealing with a major variation," said Bob Corolla of the liberal Americans for Democratic Action.

Abercrombie's rating with the group slipped to 90 last year after two years of perfect 100 scores.

"If the shift becomes a trend over years, or if you have a precipitous change, then it would be cause for concern for us.

"There are a lot more members of Congress we worry about before Neil Abercrombie.''

Liz Wilner, who analyzes House campaigns for the respected Cook Political Report, said Abercrombie's 5-point drop in votes with his fellow Democrats pales in comparison to other Democrats, many of whom have taken to voting far more often with Republicans.